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May 24, 2023

Marlene Dietrich’s Iconic Van Cleef & Arpels Ruby and Diamond Bracelet Sells for $4.5M

Marlene Dietrich’s iconic Van Cleef & Arpels ruby and diamond Jarretière

Marlene Dietrich's iconic Van Cleef & Arpels ruby and diamond Jarretière bracelet sold at a Christie's sale, titled "The Magnificent Jewels of Anne Eisenhower," in New York on June 7 for $4.5 million.

The actress commissioned the bracelet from the jeweler in 1937 and wore it to the 1951 Academy Awards and in Alfred Hitchcock's film Stage Fight. The auction totaled $11.5 million and featured several other stunning pieces of jewelry from Tiffany & Co. and Cartier. Dietrich's bracelet sold for the highest price.

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"This bracelet is legendary in a lot of ways," said Claibourne Poindexter, vp and jewelry specialist at Christie's, when the auction was first announced in March. "It was one of [Dietrich's] favorite pieces of jewelry. It's bold. It's very large in scale and has a wonderful curvature. She wore it so beautifully in Stage Fright, an Alfred Hitchcock film from 1950, and you get this appreciation for how sculptural the design is. It doesn't really fit into any period. It's not art deco jewelry. It's not retro jewelry. It's just sort of high glamour. It really is its own work of art."

The bracelet is made up of diamond earrings, a diamond necklace, a matching ruby bracelet and earrings and some pins, as well as other pieces of jewelry. It was designed by Louis Arpels and includes cushion-shaped Burmese rubies and round, single, rectangular and baguette-cut diamonds all set in platinum.

Eisenhower, who the auction was named after, was an interior designer and the granddaughter of President Dwight D. Eisenhower. She privately collected many pieces of jewelry, including a Panthère de Cartier brooch and a Tiffany and Co. Art Deco diamond bracelet that depicts a rose with rubies and emeralds.

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